Our Housewares Department is loaded like a baked potato with food prep necessities, home canning equipment and a dazzling selection of all things cast iron and enamelware. What’s old is new again at McLendon.

Glass enclosures improve fireplace performance by controlling air intake, making the wood burn more slowly and retaining more heat in the firebox. Additionally, the fireplace pulls less warm air from the house.

Allows user to leave the fire unattended.

Allows a clear view of the fire while keeping smoke and sparks out of the room.

Most have a built-in draft at the base to direct air to the bottom of the fireplace opening. This allows the user to easily start and control the fire.

Mounts securely against the face of the fireplace and overlaps the opening.

Window-mounted air conditioners cool, circulate, filter and dehumidify the air.

Ranges in size from small units with a cooling capacity of 5,000 BTUs (enough to cool a small room) to capacities as high as 12,500 BTUs.

It is important that you choose the right size of air conditioner. An oversize unit will cool but leave a damp and clammy feeling because of high relative humidity. An undersized unit will not operate effectively on very hot days.

Select by BTU rating, not horsepower. BTU is the actual cooling capacity of the unit.

Determine the efficiency of the unit by dividing the watt rating into the BTU output. The unit must have an energy efficiency rating (EER) of at least 9.7 for models under 8,000 BTU/hr., and 9.8 for larger models. The most efficient models have an EER of 11 and higher. Each model should have its EER clearly marked.

Most models should include window-mounting kits. Kits include sill brackets for extra support of the unit and side vents to ensure an airtight fit in the window.

Make sure the unit is designed for the type of window you have. Most are designed for double-hung windows, but some are made or casement windows or for in-wall installation.

Portable air conditioners cool small spaces, usually 400- to 450-square-feet.

Mounted on wheels for easy movement from room to room.

Contains both the hot and cold side of the air conditioner in one unit. Is not permanently installed, but must be connected to some place like a window where the hot air can be vented. Most models contain window-venting kits that are easy to install and easily moved from one window to another.

May be either single or dual vent. Dual vent models circulate clean air back into the room and generally cool more quickly than single vent models.

Drip models have a tray that will need to be emptied every 24-48 hours. No-drip models may cost more but do not produce any excess moisture.

Window fans use less energy than air conditioning units, and contain no chlorofluorocarbons.

Brings fresh air into the room while expelling hot air.

Typical size is 20 inches.

Larger window fans require mounting kits and side panels. The panels support the fan and prevent air from circulating around and back into the fan, resulting in a loss of performance.

Smaller units are easiest to install, as they come with the panels attached to the fan.

Used to intake and exhaust, for bringing inside air into a room or expelling inside air out of a room. Better models have electrical reversibility, which allows the user to switch from exhaust to intake without turning the fan around.

Kitchen fans are installed above the kitchen range or under the range hood and prevent smoke and grease from accumulating in the kitchen and spreading throughout the house. A switch simultaneously starts the fan and opens an outside vent.

Bathroom fans may come with an optional light or heater and are used to expel steam and odors from the room.

Should carry certified sound ratings developed by the Home Ventilating Institute and its member manufacturers. Ratings are in steps of 0.5 sones and 10 (CFM) cubic feet per minute. Limits for sound outputs are 6.5 sones for bathroom fans and 9 sones for kitchen fans up to 500 cfm.

Considered permanent because homeowners can rinse it free of particles and reuse it.

Should be rinsed every 30 days. Filter usually lasts 5 to 6 years.

Some brands have an anti-microbial agent that inhibits growth of mold, mildew, bacteria and fungi in the filter.

An electrostatic charge develops as air passes through the filter. The charge, however, varies with humidity and the furnace or A/C blowing cycles. This means some particles may fall off the filter, pass through it and re-enter the air stream.

Standard features include an automatic shut-off device to extinguish the flame if the heating unit is bumped or jarred, grills or guards to keep hands away from the surface and push-button battery-powered lighting devices.

Some areas do not allow the use of this type of heater. Check with local government agencies.

Suitable for zone heating; is clean burning and inexpensive to operate.

Uses an oxygen depletion sensor (ODS). This device shuts off the heater and the flow of gas to the burner if the oxygen level in the room becomes inadequate. An ODS is required on all unvented heating equipment.

Infrared-type heaters of this type use a ceramic radiant or panel that is positioned above the gas burner. The ignited gas gives off a bright orange glow to produce heat. A screen-like guard protects the radiant plaques but they are not otherwise enclosed.

Convection-type heaters of this type first warm the air, which then warms the objects. Has burners enclosed within a painted or enamel-coated sheet metal housing that has air openings on the top, front and possibly the sides.

Must use a venting system. In a conventional, open-face fireplace, the chimney serves as the vent. The drawback is that it pulls warm air up the chimney and out of the house.

A prefabricated fireplace has an enclosed firebox made of a material that will hold some of the heat from the flue gases so more heat is radiated back into the room.

Fireplace systems will incorporate a damper in the flue, which can be closed when the fire is extinguished. Otherwise, the warm air will continue to flow out of the house through the draft that is created.

Say you have a wood stove. You have to paint that thing (with stove paint, safe to 1200 degrees Fahrenheit), clean it (with chimney cleaner), fill it (with pellets, wood, children who wander into your enchanted forest). Wait, that’s Hansel and Gretel. But still, you’ve got a lot of tending and keeping to do if you want to keep your stove working well. We haven’t even gotten to AC upkeep. If you have questions, just refer them upwards. This HVAC glossary is for you.